Bar Council Spending Review Statement

25 November 2015

Chairman of the Bar Alistair MacDonald QC said: "This week's
report from
Citizen's Advice will make uncomfortable reading for those
holding the justice budget purse strings. If further cuts to the
justice system are planned for the Autumn Statement, the question
will be; how do we make sure access to justice is not restricted
even further?

"It is because citizens have access to justice that big
businesses pay their small firm suppliers in good time, that
parents can get the right pay and leave from their employers, and
that elderly people get the care to which they are entitled.

"The idea that people who need to use the courts are being
subsidised by the tax-payer is completely wrong. When people use
the courts and other legal avenues to enforce the law, it helps to
ensure that we all play by the rules. Without access to justice,
everyone will suffer because the rules will cease to matter."